N3RD L0V3
by sugarkitt
Summary: You can't stop change, that's a fact. What you can do is adapt to change.   This story is a sequel to "Geeks in love" by Lahdolphin, yes I have her permission , it begins in their third year of high school. DISCONTINUED.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I don't own these characters, or anything mentioned in the story. This story is loosely based on Lahdolphin's "Geeks in love", I stress the word "loosely".**

**Note: they are having a conversation on the phone, and what Niou says is in italics, while what Marui says is in bold italics. (I'm such a copycat and I know it, ah whatever…)**

**Note ll: according to my sister, this chapter sucked, so I decided to redo a part of it, also cause I'm not really sure how to write the next chapter yet.

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Marui always believed that they would be a team all the way until University, always part of the famous Rikkai tennis club. The fact was that he was 17, taken, 5 feet 6 and definitely not in the tennis club.

He had quit the tennis club and became vice-president of the student council (being with Niou had really screwed his mind. Who was he, Yagyuu?); Yagyuu had also quit the club in order to focus on his important job - president of the student council; Jackal had returned to Brazil, in search of his beloved instructor; Sanada returned to the kendo club, where he became buchou; Yanagi had felt so guilty of leaving his best friend, Inui Sadaharu that he abandoned them altogether, attending Seigaku High instead; Yukimura and Kirihara were the only ones who continued playing tennis, becoming buchou and fukubuchou in their second year. Niou? Well he too resigned in order to join the famous drama club (drama clubs are always famous, aren't they?)

But of course it wasn't that simple. For one, Marui decided to quit tennis because he was no Yukimura, so he tried to find something else. Somehow, he ended up joining student council. Yagyuu became the student council president shortly after his second year, which obviously wasn't easy. Jackal was at Brazil and nobody had heard from him from a while, they only knew that he was still playing tennis. Sanada's parents gave him a "talk" during his first year which led to his departure of the tennis club. Yanagi had to convince his parents in order to attend Seigaku, who were furious about his decision. Yukimura and Kirihara faced difficulties at the tennis club regarding their upperclassmen, and the coach (who was fired); and Niou never really liked drama that much, well at least at first he didn't.

Marui's relationship with Niou had changed during the years; they weren't a "perfect couple", their relationship was far from being perfect, but it worked. Sure it wasn't as sweet and they didn't spend as much time together, but they were still a couple. That counts for something, right?

* * *

"..."

"_Marui! You there?_" Niou asked all of a sudden.

"_**Huh? Yeah, what's up**_? "

"_You spaced out for a second."_ Now wasn't that obvious.

"_**Sorry. I guess I'm just really tired these days.**_"Marui was getting sort of annoyed.

"_Anyways, do you want to come over tonight?"_Niou always expected Marui to go over to his house while he always said he was busy when Marui asked him.

"_**Why? Is there anything special?"**_

"_Ya, I got a new movie, apparently it's pretty good."_

"_**Which movie is that?"**_

"_It's called "the inception", I think it's about dreams or something. I've ordered pizza too. Are you going to come or not?_"

"_**I'd love to, but I just remembered I can't...Yagyuu made me do all this paperwork.**_"Marui replied with a bit of sarcasm.

"_Can't you quit the job?_"Niou sounded pissed.

"_**Well you're the one who blew me off last night for that stupid play.**_"

"_Come on, you know I love Midsummer Night's Dream, it's my favourite play._"

"_**I'll come if you help me with the paperwork.**_"

"_Nuh-uh, no way._"

"_**Jerk.**_"

"_Fine, have it your way, I'll just have to play the game myself._"

"_**What game? I thought we were watching a movie.**_"

"_Ya, but I also got a game. The new fifth generation Pokémon game on DS. I bought it yesterday._"

"_**You're trying to trick me. That game hasn't even come out yet!**__"_

"_Let's just say that I have my ways."_

"_**What the hell Niou, that doesn't even make sense."**_

"_Technically, I make sense, you're the one who doesn't make sense._"

"_**Technically, you're an asshole."**_

"_Technically, you're being stupid."_

"_**Technically, I hate you**__."_ With that, Marui hung up the phone.

"_Love ya too._" Niou muttered.

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We'd like to thank everybody who reviewed for this fic. So, thank you to **frejahimitsu, xCinnanomxSwirlx, Lahdolphin, GIGIbunny, lokica, kelsiemofe, asif, ABC's, Coco96, Tezzino **and everybody who read this story =). (Now I feel better since my new year's resolution was to thank people a lot more, so…THANK YOU!)

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**A/N: I love "technically" conversations; I have them all the time with my friends. By Chantal and Noel, all comments are welcome. **

**Also, today is September 11, so R.I.P. please!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: We don't own these characters, or anything mentioned in the story. This story is loosely based on Lahdolphin's "Geeks in love", we stress the word "loosely".**

**Note: They're texting for a part of this chapter, once again Niou is italics while Marui is bold italics. It's texting, so there are some abbreviations, cause when we text, that's what we do.**

**

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Marui frowned. Did Niou really enjoy getting him in trouble that much? They were so going to get caught.

_Why didn't you come over last night?_

So now he's accusing him? He really hated texting.

_**Cause u were being a bitchy asshole.**_

_U were being the bitchy asshole._

_**Excuse me for trying to finish my work.**_

_Excuse ME for trying to spend some time with his bitchy boyfriend._

Since when Niou start calling him bitchy?

_**Shut up**_

_Make me_

Oh shit…the teacher noticed them texting.

_**Leave me alone, the teacher's watching me**_

_Idc. you're acting like you have pms._

"Marui-kun, would you please stop whatever you're doing and concentrate on writing this essay? It's due tomorrow"

* * *

Lunch sucked, Niou was off at some drama club meeting and yagyuu was busy doing…something.

"Hey Marui! Come sit with us"

When Kirihara yelled, he didn't just yell like a normal person. He stood up and waved his arms around, sort of like a S.O.S. It was really embarrassing sometimes.

"'Kay, coming now, wait a sec!" He yelled back at Akaya, then proceeded to purchase some chocolate bars from the vending machine.

He didn't eat as many sweets as before, because he didn't exercise daily anymore, so too many sweets would make him gain weight. The only time he really gorged was when he was mad and annoyed. Sugar took away all of his worries.

"So, how is it being vice-president?" Yukimura always asked the pointless questions; maybe being with Kirihara really did change your personality.

"It's okay, but really annoying with all the paperwork and the responsibility. At least it makes my parents happy and gives me more credits."

"How's Niou coping? He told me that you were ignoring him," answered Kirihara.

Kirihara doesn't doubt what people say, and he listens to them and tries to understand, which was why everyone liked ranting to him.

"He's lying. I didn't ignore him, I just didn't go over to his house last night. "

"Why not? Don't you guys always sleep over at each other's house?" asked Kirihara.d

"He refused to do my paperwork." Marui complained.

"That's a horrible excuse, why should he do your work for you?" Yukimura was always the voice of reason.

"He's the one who wanted me to come over, so he should help me!"

"You sound like an annoyed wife who won't admit she's wrong," teased Kirihara.

"What's your point? I have to go now, so goodbye."

* * *

Niou actually didn't have a Drama club meeting. He just needed to talk to Yagyuu.

"Fire Marui."

"Niou-kun, that is an irresponsible and rude thing to ask of me, did something happen between you two?" Yagyuu politely declined.

"Whatever happened is none of your business. Just fire him, he must be terrible for the job, am I right?"

"First of all, I can't fire him since he was chosen by the student body, so I cannot just fire him. Second of all, he is actually very good for this position, since he is quite helps me sort out some problems. Third of all, he doesn't want to be fired. He enjoys his job immensely. Because of these reasons, I'm afraid that I cannot help you, Niou-kun."

"Will you please help me, since I was your previous doubles partners and best buddy before?" Niou seemed ready to go down on his knees.

But Yagyuu was not Jackal with his soft-hearted moments so he flatly refused. Niou sighed. He should have known that Yagyuu was quite the back-stabber when it came to his own gain. Oh well, he was going to have to sort out this problem by himself, without Yagyuu's help.

Suddenly, Niou received a text message on his phone.

_**Why on earth would u ask Yagyuu to fire me, Niou?**_

Yagyuu was so dead.

* * *

"I'm so sorry! I really didn't mean to do that to you. But ever since you started this stupid job, we haven't been spending as much time together," Niou explained.

"Masaharu, you know that's not true."

Marui only called Niou by his given name on three occasions, one, when Niou played a prank on him (like dyeing his hair green), two, when he was really upset and wanting to slap a bitch, and three was when they were having a more intimate moment.

"Are you going to slap me?"

"Of course not. I just want to take your head right now and squish it into a pie for asking Yagyuu to fire me."

"Touching."

"Thank you. And just to let you know, I'm not going to go over to your house today, or tomorrow, or next week, or next month."

"Somebody's obsessed."

"Obsessed with what? Being pissed at you?" Marui really does sound like a bitchy boyfriend.

"No, obsessed with your stupid job of vice-president. You've changed Marui. You're always busy with this, and busy with that. Where's the old Marui, who liked sweets, who was my best friend and who wasn't a bitchy nerd like you are now? What happened to him?" Niou remembered all the fun times they had together, the first time they kissed, the first time they admitted that they liked each other, the homophobic Yukimura, the first time they had a fight, the first time they had sex. All the ups and downs throughout their relationship.

What were they now? They had drifted apart from each other through the years; they were always busy with auditions, plays, rehearsals, meetings, paperwork, speeches, homework. This fight had been building up for a long time, the trigger had been pulled, it had been too much, and they had to fight it out.

"That's what I am to you, a bitchy nerd? Guess what? I'm just going to go do some bitchy nerdy stuff now," after the outburst, Marui walked away.

That wasn't how it was supposed to end, they were supposed to make up and kiss, but nothing happens like it does in the movies. Movies are a reproduction of what people want to happen, happy endings, fairytale princesses and the prince with the white horse, Cinderella stories, exciting lives, smooth relationships… that just didn't happen in real life.

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**A/N: I think both of them are sort of ooc, but Marui is the vice-president so he should change, right? I'm just making excuses to make myself feel better...anyways, what I said about movies is actually what I think, sometimes I wish that I could live in a movie :) By Chantal and Noel, all comments are welcome! Btw, do you guys think I have too many conversations?**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: We don't own these characters, or anything mentioned in the story. This story is loosely based on Lahdolphin's "Geeks in love", we stress the word "loosely".

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He got off the wrong side of the bed, noticed a hat on it, broke the mirror while brushing his teeth, felt his right eye twitch, unintentionally put his shoes on the table, spilled the salt shaker during breakfast, dropped a knife and picked it up, watched his mother kill a cricket, missed the bus, walked on the sidewalk cracks, under a ladder, and saw a black cat. Marui knew that it was going to be a bad day.

While making his way to class, he tripped on a banana peel, fell in a puddle of orange glue (glue mixed with orange paint), got feathers thrown on him and heard a flash of a camera. It was April fool's day all over again.

"What. The. Fuck." spat Marui as walked up to Niou's desk covered in glue and feathers.

Niou grinned. "What's up?"

"This is what's up." Marui said as he motioned towards the mess on himself.

"Ohh, did you like my surprise?"

"It's on, bitch."

* * *

Niou was having an exceptionally good day; he woke up on the right side of the bed, sneezed 3 times before breakfast, found a penny on the bus, picked up a four-leaf clover, carried an acorn in his pocket, and saw a bluebird. All was going well, his prank had worked great.

But as the day passed, the good signs faded away. He lost the penny he found, accidentally ripped a leaf off the clover, crushed the acorn, and saw a black crow flying by. By the end of the day he had seen 13 black cats, opened his umbrella indoors, and broke a mirror.

When the bell rang, he tried to get home as fast as possible, but instead tripped on a cord, landed in paint, had eggs and tomatoes thrown at him and walked into door as he got up. This wasn't finished; he was going to get back at Marui for this.

In the following days, the pranks continued endlessly, the water tasted spicy, food tasted weird, paint and feathers happened every day, tripping was almost normal, and not to mention all the missing homework. It was getting really annoying.

* * *

_TEnsai has logged in._

_Jackal_K. has logged in._

**TEnsai: **hey Jackal

**Jackal_K.**: hey

**TEnsai: **any news? R u still playing tennis? How's ur mentor? How's brazil?

**Jackal_K.:** Brazil's great, the weather is really hot, though. y r u asking me this all of a sudden? How are you and Niou?

**TEnsai: **i don't wanna talk about it. Did you see your old instructor?

**Jackal_K.:** ya. And OMG he grew hair again. So I'm growing hair too.

**TEnsai: **i cannot imagine u with hair. =(

**Jackal_K.:** that's not true! My girlfriend said that I look fabulous with hair!

**TEnsai: **u got a gf? Omfg, I never knew that would happen! :P

**Jackal_K.:** ya i got a gf, congratulate me =)! Oh ya. How Is niou doing? r u guys still together? did u guys get in a fight?

**TEnsai:** idk if we're 2gether or not… I mean we didn't really break up, but we got in this huge fight and he called me a bitch O.o! so than I ditched him, and he started pranking me the second day, just like he pranked Yukimura that time…so we started a prank war,.

**Jackal_K.:** O.O complicated! Y did u guys get in a fight? Y r u guys still fighting? How long has it been since u started the fight? Who's fault is it?

**TEnsai:** woaaah that's a lot of questions! So we got into a fight since I refused to go to his house since he wouldn't help me with my paper work, I mean seriously, it wont kill him :*(! Idk y we're still fighting…I just don't know how 2 stop, I mean it's sort of his fault, and sort of my fault, but I mean….ugh IDC! Whatever!

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_StudentCouncilPresident has logged in_

_*Puri*has logged in_

_*_**Puri*: **wow yagyuu, ur name is laaaame!

**StudentCouncilPresident:** excuse me, niou-kun, but I don't think that is very polite.

***Puri*:** who names themselves StudentCouncilPresident? *****

**StudentCouncilPresident: **Niou-kun, I am the student council president, so my name suggests the truth.

***Puri*: **but chat names are all about creation, not the obvious!

**StudentCouncilPresident: **Please do get on with what you would like to say, Niou-kun. I still have many papers to look over.

***Puri*: **why would you have papers to look over? it's just a stupid job.

**StudentCouncilPresident: **Niou-kun, this job may seem quite boring, but actually it's quite enjoyable, and very important. I must look over the Drama club's application of getting some more costumes and makeup. I dare say that you are in the drama club, right, Niou-kun.

***Puri*: **oh well.

**StudentCouncilPresident: **Niou-kun, I believe that you wish to talk to me about Marui-kun, right?

***Puri*: **how did u know?

**StudentCouncilPresident: **Niou-kun, we used to be best friends, don't you remember?

***Puri*: **but aren't we still best friends?

**StudentCouncilPresident: **Not anymore, Niou-kun…

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**A/N: Maybe it's just us, but does anybody really celebrate April fool's day anymore? Seriously, the only prank we have ever done is putting salt and sugar in my mom's water, and she noticed it…By Chantal and Noel, all comments are welcome! We'd love to hear your opinion!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: We don't own these characters, or anything mentioned in the story. This story is loosely based on Lahdolphin's "Geeks in love", we stress the word "loosely".

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"_You can't change the past, but you can ruin the present by worrying about the future__."_

"_Don't count every hour in the day, make every hour in the day count._"

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Scarlett O'Hara never realized what she had until it was too late; she took everything for granted, and instead wanted something that she couldn't have. Realistically, you can't blame her, it's only too easy to take things for granted. It isn't even always the obvious things, such as shelter, food, clothing, but also the people you are with, the siblings you think you hate, the privileges you were born with, and the people who are always there for you.

Marui was the best thing that happened in his life. He was Niou's best friend, he understood why Niou loved hard math, he accepted the strange quirks Niou had, helped him achieve his dreams, stood by his side when no one else would, but most of all he loved Niou for who he was. Niou was Marui's best friend, he thought Marui's sweet obsession was cute, he never teased him about his weight, he understood Marui's insecurities, and loved him more than anyone else did.

When you first find that someone, you are appreciative of what you have, you realize that you're so damn lucky and enjoy every moment you have with them, but time can do a lot. Soon you think of it as something normal, you start to think that it's what they should do, not something they choose to do, you stop thinking of it as a blessing, and you take it for granted. That's exactly what happened with Niou.

He really didn't think about it too much until he started missing Marui. During the first year of high school, they decided together that they won't be joining the tennis club, since they would never be the best like Yukimura, stand out like Kirihara or even master the sport like Yanagi, it really suit them better to devote their time to something else. Marui was slow at finding something he loved, he tried the swim team but found it boring, went to the baking club and got banned from it, tried out for the basketball team but didn't make it due to his height and signed up for the photography club only to quit because he didn't have a camera. Niou knew what he wanted to do from the start – drama; he was the best at impersonating someone in their region and what else to use that talent at other than drama? He quickly became the star of their school, playing major parts in every single production and even directing a few. The time spent on the club increased until he was not able to give Marui the attention he wanted. That was probably why Marui went for student council, being the vice-president; he was also the center of attention.

It was around this time that Niou started to notice the changes, instead of him being the one who ditched Marui for more "important" stuff; it was Marui who missed their dates and sleepovers due to his important duties. What comes around goes around.

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_*Puri* has logged in_

***Puri*: **Marui, I know you're here! Talk to me, please?

***Puri*: ** Marui, I'm sorry, will you come over? Or can I go over to your house?

***Puri*: ** Bunta, I'm really sorry, can we just talk this over? I'm so sorry!

***Puri*: **Please just forgive me! Let's just be friends again, okay?

***Puri*: ** Marui?

* * *

_You have 5 messages._

**INBOX: **

**Unread: (No Subject) **Bunta, I'm sorry! Niou Masaharu 2:50pm

**Unread: (R u there?) **Are you there? Please come over, or can we talk somewhere?

Niou Masaharu 3:00pm

**Unread: (Please respond!) **Where are you? Respond, please! Niou Masaharu 3:04pm

**Unread: (Sorry) **I'm so sorry, will you please respond? Niou Masaharu 3:10pm

**Unread: (Read this! Important) **Are u okay Bunta? U didn't get kidnapped or anything did u? Niou Masaharu 3:16pm

**Read: (Student Council Meeting) **Marui-kun, there is an important student council meeting tomorrow at school at 12:30… Yagyuu Hiroshi 2:07

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"Marui-san, may I please talk to Bunta? It's Niou on the phone."

"Please wait a minute…BUNTA! Niou's on the phone! Huh? What? Oh, Okay! …Niou-kun? Sorry, but Bunta says that he's really busy now and he can't be disturbed.

"Oh... thank you, bye!"

* * *

School was hell. Marui seemed to have given up on the pranks and instead took to ignoring Niou. So Niou decided to take the 'direct' approach…

"So, we can conclude that…" The door flew open. "Marui," said Niou, panting. "I'm really sorry! Will you forgive me?"

Yagyuu adjusted his glasses. "This is the student council room, Niou-kun. We are also in the middle of a very important and top secret meeting. No non-members are allowed. If you may excuse us, please talk to Marui-kun here after the meeting. But I warn you, Niou-kun, that Marui-kun is a very important member, and that you have been influencing Marui-kun in a very disturbing fashion, so as the student council president, I hereby warn you to back off."

Marui's eye twitched.

"But I want to talk to him, Yagyuu! Just give us a second…"

"Niou-kun, do you wish to be expelled? You are up against the student council, you see. We can have you expelled if we all vote against you."

"Bug off! I just want to talk to him for a second…"

"Niou Masaharu! Who do you think you are? We have more authority than you, so I advise you to leave before this event is used against you."

Marui slammed the table as he got up. "Don't yell at my boy friend, you fucking idiot! Just leave him alone!"

Niou widened his eyes in disbelief. "Marui?"

"If we're gonna talk, than why don't we talk somewhere else? Let's go."

* * *

"I'm so sorry, I'm sorry for insulting you, and I'm sorry for taking you for granted."

"Huh? Where did that come from? Niou you don't have to apologize, I insulted you too." Marui responded gently.

"So, we're good?" Niou almost looked vulnerable at that point.

Marui stepped forward and wrapped his arms around Niou's waist. "Of course we're good, now kiss me already, I've really missed you."

"As you wish, princess."

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**A/N: In this chapter, we used a part from "Gone with the wind", and also a lot of references from "Geeks in love". I'm just so happy that they made up. By Chantal and Noel, we would love to hear about what you guys think of this chapter =).**


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: We don't own these characters, or anything mentioned in the story. This story is loosely based on Lahdolphin's "Geeks in love", we stress the word "loosely".

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Marui placed the resignation letter on Yagyuu's desk. "I'm quitting the student council."

Yagyuu adjusted his glasses. "Why, Marui-kun?" he asked. "You are a fine vice-president. The student body really appreciates your work and your skills."

Marui snorted. "Don't think I don't know, Yagyuu. You've been holding a grudge versus me ever since I shouted at you. If I don't resign, who knows what will happen to me?"

Yagyuu studied Marui's face. "Do you truly think I am that evil?"

"No. I just think that you will give me a hard time. Now sign here, and off I go."

A strip of light flashed across his glasses. "I'm afraid I cannot sign, Marui-kun."

Marui stared at Yagyuu. "What? But you're the president! Just sign here. You have the authority, don't you?"

Yagyuu looked away. "The student council needs you, Marui-kun. I cannot be selfish and hold a grudge just because of my personal matters and fire you. The student body would be upset, if you resigned. You're a very hard worker, so I think you deserve this job, Marui-kun."

Marui's eyes widened. "Aren't you mad at me for…for what I did yesterday?"

"I'm afraid I cannot answer that question right now, Marui-kun. Now would you please excuse yourself before I might change my mind suddenly?"

"Ok…see ya!"

* * *

It was Friday night. Empty pizza boxes and mountain dew were everywhere, Niou and Marui sat side by side on the ground, watching the opening credits go by.

"So, what's up?" Niou seemed almost too cheerful to be normal.

"Nothing much, how was drama?"

"It was fine…so, did anything big happen today?"

"No..." Marui answered, looking up at Niou's face suspiciously.

"Nothing…about the student council or say…Yagyuu?" Niou remarked subtly.

"Nope, nothing at all."

"Are you sure? Nothing about resignation letters?" Niou said sarcastically.

"Oh right, I forgot to tell you. Yagyuu didn't fire me, so I'm still on the student council! Isn't that great?" Marui replied happily.

"What the fuck? Didn't you say that Yagyuu would probably fire you?" Niou hissed.

"What do you mean by that?"Marui asked.

"I mean that he should've fired you!"

"So you _wanted _me to be fired?" Marui hissed back at Niou.

"No…I don't mean it that way. I meant that if you're the vice-president again, wouldn't it be like before? Wouldn't you always be busy again?"

"And you're saying this when you are still involved in the drama club?" Marui accused.

"Well, you know me. It's not like I'm going to continue drama after I graduate or something, it's just a hobby, just something to get my parents to stop telling me that I should get involved with something" Niou argued back.

"How is that different from me? I'm only doing this because of _my_ parents, plus, there is no student council in real life. You're just being a jerk."

"Bitch."

"Loser."

"Bitchy loser."

"Asshole."

"Bitchy loser asshole."

"You're pathetic."

"Pathetic bitchy loser asshole."

"Will you just stop that? It's so fucking annoying."

"Fucking pathetic bitchy loser asshole."

"Look, I'm sorry. I don't want to fight again. Let's just make up, kiss and get this over with, 'kay?"

Niou couldn't help but to smile, it was the little things in Marui's personality that he loved the most, like his impatience, his enthusiasm for new things, and how he gets bored easily. It almost made him proud that Marui hasn't gotten bored with him even after such a long time.

"Gladly." He wrapped his arms around Marui and kissed him softly.

"There, all is well."

"Does that mean you're okay with the whole firing thing?" Marui asked.

"I'm not happy with it, but if it makes you happy, I guess I'm okay with it." Niou conceded.

"You know, at times like this you're the perfect boyfriend. But most of the time you're just a bitchy asshole."

"That's why you love me."

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**A/N: Ugh, I don't think this is even a bit like geeks now, it's getting really stupid now…first day of school today! It was okay, but some people are just really annoying. By Chantal and Noel, all comments are welcome. **


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: We don't own these characters, or anything mentioned in the story. This story is loosely based on Lahdolphin's "Geeks in love", we stress the word "loosely".**

**Note: I took a part of this story from SilverCyanide's "Every day is a holiday", well really just the holiday because I needed a plot-starter and I couldn't think of one. So, credit to SilverCyanide for the amazing idea of doing something every day of the year. Thanks!

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_Dear Niou (wow did I just say dear?)_

_Anyways, I just wanted to apologize for everything I've done this year. For ignoring you, for not admitting that I was ignoring you, for being unreasonable, for forgetting to get you a present on our anniversary, for insulting you, for calling you a nerdy asshole (is it just me or does that qualify under insulting you?), for accusing you of things you never did, for all those stupid pranks I pulled on you, and overall being a hell of a crappy boyfriend. For all of these faults, will you pardon me?_

_I have no idea why I wrote this letter, but let's just say that it's pardon day today, so I want you to pardon me. Also, I don't know if you remember, but this is our three year anniversary, and I actually got a gift for you this time (I am _such_ a genius, eh?)!So, tonight can you come over to my house at around 5? _

_From your crappy boyfriend Marui._

_P.S. I'm not that crappy of a boyfriend am I?

* * *

_

"There's nothing special here." Niou motioned towards Marui's room, filled with the usual pizza boxes, mountain dew, video games and movies.

"Wait, lemme go get something. Wait a sec, 'kay?" Marui laid a soft kiss on Niou's cheek than left the room. About 10 minutes later, he came back, cheeks tinted pink from excitement.

"Sorry I took so long, I sort of forgot where I saved it." Marui laughed nervously as he opened his laptop. Niou thought it was one of the cutest things he ever saw.

"What's _it_?"

"You'll see, now close your eyes, if you peek I will chop your head off, or something like that." A series of fumbling noises happened, and few "shit", "what the fuck?'s" and "'come on!'s" were heard.

"Ok, open your eyes now."

As Marui said that, the music started. A clear melodic melody played on the computer, followed by a lyrical passage, and repeating again. Then, a slideshow started, it was filled with photos of Niou, Marui and of them together. First there were the photos that Niou put in his not-really-valentines-day-present-but-also-not-really-his-white-day-present-either, then photos of their graduation, the dinner, the trip they went on to a nearby town, the summer they spent together, just a few pictures taken in their rooms, a picture of Niou smiling a toothy grin with a pencil tucked in his ear and math problems in his hand, and video clips from every single play Niou was in.

"You…went to those? I thought you said that you couldn't because of student council." Niou's eyes were red, and his hands were restless.

"Whaddya think? That I would miss seeing my gorgeous boyfriend's show?" Marui teased with a smirk on his face, but his eyes gave him away.

Niou didn't say anything, but instead stepped closer to pull Marui into a tight hug.

"You're the best boyfriend I could have, even if you did do all of those stupid things." Niou dipped his head down and engaged Marui into a tender kiss.

"By the way, what's the music called?"

"Clair de lune, by Debussy. I chose it cause it sort of reminds me of your hair.".

"Love you." Niou mumbled against Marui's lips.

"Love ya too."

* * *

When Marui woke up, Niou was still asleep so he quickly shook him awake.

"Wake up you asshole!"

Niou opened one of his eyes sleepily. "What time is it?"

"Time for you to get a watch."

Niou groaned and rolled over. "No, seriously."

"Fine…it's 8:30…and if you don't wake up in ten seconds, it'll be 8:31."

Niou immediately sat up, shoving Marui to the ground. "Oh shit! We're late!" He then scrambled out of bed and started changing into his school uniform.

Marui rolled his eyes as he got up from the ground. "Told you that you should get up. That hurt, you know."

"Sorry, but our bus comes at 8:40 and we're going to miss it." Niou turned around and saw Marui just lounging around on his bed.

"What the hell are you doing? Hurry up!"

"You know, it's Saturday today."

* * *

**A/N: I had the crappiest day ever. EVER. I missed my stupid bus cause there was too many people on it so they didn't let me on, and then I wandered around in the rain with these other 2 guys cause I couldn't find the bus stop, my hair got wet cause I forgot my umbrella and I was freezing. **

**By the way, We will be posting a new fic on Friday after school, it's called "Rikkai addicts", feel free to check it out =) By Chantal and Noel.**


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: We don't own these characters, or anything mentioned in the story. This story is loosely based on Lahdolphin's "Geeks in love"; we stress the word "loosely".**

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Niou knocked on the Student Council Office door. "Marui?"

"Come in, please." When Niou pushed open the door, instead of seeing his boy friend though, he saw Yagyuu sitting at Marui's seat. "Well, hello, Niou-kun. Marui-kun went to the bathroom, and asked me to take care of his spot until he comes back."

Niou suddenly felt quite uneasy. They were alone in the room. "Well, um, okay…"

"If you have no business here, Niou-kun, then could you please excuse yourself and leave? I would thank you."

"Wait!" Yagyuu looked up to study his former teammate.

"Why aren't we friends anymore?" demanded Niou. "Why?"

Yagyuu looked away. "I do not wish to answer that question. Now would you please leave?"

"Stop trying to avoid this conversation!" ordered Niou. "I want to know, and I have the right to know. Did something happen? Is it because of Marui?"

Yagyuu turned to look out the window. "I do not wish to answer that question. Now would you please leave, Niou-kun?"

"Yagyuu, I'm not asking a complicated question, just one simple thing. Why aren't we friends anymore? You didn't care if I was gay or if people called me a fag, so why are you avoiding me now?" Niou persevered.

"Niou-kun, people change." Yagyuu answered quietly.

"That's your reason?"

"Yes Niou-kun, so now will you please leave me alone? As the president of student council I am quite busy." Yagyuu looked away.

"Fine," Niou replied. He started out the door. "Now I see what you really are. A wimp. You're just a wimp." Niou spat out his words in a fury and stormed away.

Yagyuu sighed, and looked back at all the forms and surveys he still had to fill in, but realized that he could not concentrate on his work, so he set his pencil down. Niou was right. He was just a wimp, after all. Just a wimp.

* * *

"Yagyuu I'm baaack! Sorry I took so long, but the bathroom was really uncooperative, you should've seen the line!" Marui rushed into the room in a flourish.

"Ah yes Marui-kun, very amusing." Yagyuu commented lightly.

"Yagyuu, are you alright? You look kind of sick…" Marui remarked with concern in his eyes.

"I'm fine. Marui-kun, here are some papers regarding the debate club. Look over them and make the decision." Yagyuu straightened up and handed Marui a stack of papers.

"Fine fine. You're so annoying…"

"Am I…" Yagyuu whispered faintly, but Marui was already gone.

* * *

Where ever Marui went, he brought an air of happiness and sugary sweetness. The old ladies adored him, the teachers were proud of him, the boys admired him and the girls fawned over him. He was like a star that shone wherever he went. Yagyuu on the other hand, was the polite gentleman. A guy or a girl would say "oh him, ya, he's nice," but nothing more. He was the kind of student every teacher would love to have, but truthfully, quite a boring guy. There was nothing exciting about him; he was nice looking, but nothing more. He was smart, but not a genius. Sporty, but never the best. Overall he was just a bit over the average guy. No wonder Niou liked Marui and not him.

He had a crush on Niou ever since their second year of middle school. In his opinion, what was there not to love about Niou? From the outside, he was a trickster, an attractive trickster to say the least, a popular guy and a jock. If you know him better, he's a nice guy, a caring friend, and a thoughtful teammate. When Niou told everyone that he was dating Marui, Yagyuu thought he had a chance. He tried to show his true intentions, and even got jealous over Marui. Though at the end he gave up, he never really forgot about it. As a gentleman, if he was going to do something, he was going to it all the way. That was the reason why he started distancing himself from Niou, simply because he made a commitment. The commitment was to not interfere with Niou's relationship with Marui, which wouldn't be possible if he continued being Niou's best friend.

Now at last, everything in the world was at a balance. If Yagyuu did whatever he wanted to and broke his commitment, then Marui would be a very miserable person. Vice versa, if Marui decided to flaunt what he had already, then Yagyuu would be even more miserable than he was now. But so far, all was well, the world was at balance. Niou and Yagyuu would never be the famous doubles pair again, but they did enjoy a quite normal relationship, and that was fine for Yagyuu. He didn't ask for too much.

* * *

"Hey Yagyuu? I'm sorry for yelling at you today, I have no idea why I did that."

"It's alright Niou-kun, I am not offended."

"Well, I'm glad. See ya!" _Click._

"Good night." Yagyuu hung up the phone, and secretly smiled to himself.

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_Dedicated to coco96 :)_

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**A/N: This is a bad chapter, but I just found out I passed my two theory exams, which means I will get my grade 10 piano certificate! :) Reward me some comments?**

**By Chantal and Noel, all reviews are welcome!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: We don't own these characters, or anything mentioned in the story. This story is loosely based on Lahdolphin's "Geeks in love"; we stress the word "loosely".**

**A/N: If you guys didn't notice, I redid chapter 1. When I was re-reading my chapters, I found chapter 1 really wasn't that good, and I didn't have any ideas for chapter 7, so I re-wrote it. Care to tell me what you think about the new version?

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Yukimura was known for his strange disgust of cucumbers, basically his pet peeve. Sanada's pet peeves were cats - all kinds of them: cute, tiny, ugly, catty and mean. Kirihara was disgusted by glue. Yagyuu was annoyed when seeing people abuse proper language, Yanagi felt irritated when he couldn't write something down, and Niou thought it was plain stupid to adore an inanimate object. For Marui, he hated seeing overly sugary public displays of affection. Obviously, it was _not_ because he was jealous that other couples were allowed to share signs of affection without having people gawk at them. Evidently it was _not_ because he became jealous when seeing other people share these seemingly wonderful relationships. So of course he wasn't annoyed when he saw Jackal and his girlfriend do just exactly what he of course _did not_ dislike.

For two weeks, Jackal was coming to visit Japan. He brought with him his girlfriend Jackie who absolutely adored Jackal and his hair. Marui had been excited for days when he heard about the news, and talked to everyone about it. As it turned out, Niou got annoyed and started ignoring Marui, though like always, they worked it out. As the time drew by, Marui prepared his house for their arrival. He had never expected for Jackal to come back from Brazil. After all, he hadn't seen Yanagi after his big decision. That was why he decided that a reunion must be held.

Marui waited patiently for flight 116 to land. He checked his watch. Jackal was late by 10 minutes. Was he even going to come, or was this just a hoax?

"Marui!" Marui turned around to see Jackal (with hair) holding the hand of a Brazilian girl. He had never expected Jackal to look quite handsome with hair, since his old haircut looked like he was wearing a mop on his head.

They hugged, and Marui felt slightly sad. They had been separated for so long, so who knows how Jackal might have changed? Were they still the intimate friends they were a few years ago?

"Marui, this is Jackie, my girlfriend," introduced Jackal. "She's the daughter of my old instructor."

Marui studied the girl in front of him carefully. He searched his brain for something nice, or a compliment to say. "You're bald," he blurted out. Marui immediately regretted his choice of words. Jackal had a look of shock on his face.

"Your friend is so charming," whispered Jackie to Jackal. "He seems like a very interesting person." Jackal smiled, and Marui sighed in relief. Luckily he didn't offend Jackie, or he would be offending Jackal. That would be bad.

"Well…thank you? But…why are you bald? Is it because you were influenced by Jackal?" Marui replied embarrassingly.

"Jackie used to have lung cancer. Could we go back to your residence now?" Jackal replied quickly and made their way out of the airport.

Quietly, he whispered to Jackie, "Are you alright? It's been a long flight, we're almost there." Jackie whispered softly back with a soft smile. Jackal seemed to be relieved by her response, and intertwined his hand with hers.

Marui felt a pang of jealousy as he watched Jackal and Jackie walk hand in hand, chatting in a comfortable tone. He and Niou were more like a pair of closely knitted friends than a couple. They bickered constantly and misunderstood each other. They weren't perfect, not in the way Jackal and Jackie were. As he watched Jackal tend to everything Jackie needed with a tenderness he never even knew Jackal possessed, he thought over his own relationship. Why weren't they like them? Marui pondered over the thought. Would their relationship end because it wasn't straight from a movie? Would he be forced to forget everything they shared? No, he didn't want that. He couldn't afford losing Niou again; Niou was the one person who understood him, the one person who _got_ him, and the one guy who he could share everything with. He really couldn't lose him.

* * *

Niou raised his eyebrow. "A reunion with all the regulars? That's crazy! We don't even know whether Yanagi is alive right now anymore! He totally ditched us for his stupid Seigaku friend! For all we know he could be at Antarctica writing data on penguins!" It was understandable. Yanagi had been one of Niou's closest friends, but he had just ditched them and let the past crumble away into dust. "I cannot understand you."

Marui sighed. "Niou, we should forgive him. You should know how sad he was when he had to leave his friend. He told us about that! Weren't you the one who encouraged him to do whatever his heart desired? Or something like that… What's wrong with inviting him?"

Niou rolled his eyes. "I said that he could do whatever he liked, not something cheesy like that. He ditched us! I thought he would still keep in touch! Don't you get it? We all trusted him, but he just left without a word! Would you forgive me if I did that?"

"Well, no. But that's a different situation."

"How is it different?" Niou accused.

"Case closed. I've already invited them."

"What? You did that without even asking me?" Niou said disbelievingly.

"Yep. I have to go now, Jackal and his girlfriend are at my house, and I can't just leave them there like that."With that, Marui left the Niou's house.

* * *

Kirihara beamed. "A reunion, what a great idea! We must go!" Yukimura nodded his agreement. "It is a good idea, I actually haven't seen Yanagi for a while…"

"I am sorry Marui-kun, but I cannot attend. What more, I do not see the point of this reunion. I am quite busy, and this will not fit in my schedule. Do tell them that I wish them well." Marui didn't expect Yagyuu to be enthusiastic about it, but neither did he expect him to be this indifferent.

"Are you sure? We can arrange the time for you."

"No, I really don't think I have time. There is a golf tournament that day, and I would not like to miss it. Good day to you."

"Marui? I didn't expect you to call. I haven't really kept in touch with my teammates have I…? Well I will come, no doubt about it." Yanagi calmly commented.

"That's great! Don't forget the time!" Marui cheerfully replied.

"Just one thing, can I bring Sadaharu with me? I would like you guys to meet him. He really is such a wonderful person"

"Sure! Why not. See you there!"

Jackal agreed quickly to the suggestion. After all, he was staying with Marui. But only on one condition, if he could bring Jackie. The suggestion annoyed Marui, but he agreed to it nonetheless.

"Thank you! I really appreciate it. Jackie will be thrilled, I've told her so much about you guys!" Jackal really was devoted.

Sanada was still the same person, gruff, silent and polite. He listened attentively to what Marui said and replied in a quiet manner that yes, he would be delighted to come.

The invitations were sent out, the reservations were ready. All that was left was to wait for the exciting day.

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**A/N: Do you guys like Jackie? Hate her? To tell the truth I don't really like her, but she has to exists for the story to go on. I haven't been updating as often, but I will update eventually when I get an idea or I have time :).**

**By Chantal and Noel. All comments are welcome!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: We don't own these characters, or anything mentioned in the story. This story is loosely based on Lahdolphin's "Geeks in love"; we stress the word "loosely".**

**Note: Wow, my English teacher gives a "grammar Friday" every week and now I'm super paranoid about grammar, hopefully it's not too bad in this fic!

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It was 6:00. Everybody was seated in a booth. By everybody, I mean everybody except for Yagyuu. Yanagi had brought Inui, and Jackal had brought Jackie. Nobody said anything and everybody had forced smiles. The Rikkai tennis team was back together, just like the old times.

"So, what do you want for dinner?" Kirihara asked. He had always been the most eager, the chattiest of all of them.

After an uncomfortable lack of responses, Kirihara responded to seemingly no one, "For a drink, I'll have…a 'tomato clam cocktail'. That sounds nice. What is it?"

Yanagi flipped a few pages of his notebook. "That is a cocktail consisting of tomatoes, which is a fruit though some people seem to disagree. Personally I believe it's a…fine, I'll continue. It consists of a clam mixture, which is a type of sea shell that is known for its smooth shell and delicate flavor."

"I lost you at 'fruit'."

"I understand."

"Well I thought that was a wonderful explanation," Inui complimented. Yanagi whispered a quiet thank you.

Everyone started ordering for the sake of keeping themselves busy and. It seemed so strange to eat at a restaurant together, as if it was middle school all over again. Most people had left the tennis club ever since the last time they shared a table, but here they were, seated in a booth with a few additions to their group.

"I'll have the tropical cocktail and Jackie here will have some orange juice," Jackal ordered as he looked at Jackie with a warm smile on his face. Jackie looked back and they shared a moment of bliss.

"Uh…mountain dew for me, and for Niou too," commanded Marui, trying to copy the previous example.

"Marui, I wanted to try the pineapple and orange mix," Niou stated with a dismayed look at Marui's direction. Marui pretended to not hear his complaints.

"We will have pizza…is that alright with everyone?" Yukimura concluded. A series of "Ok's", "sure", and "fine" were heard around the table. A moment of awkward silence ensued as no one seemed able to hold a decent conversation. Marui would talk about student council, but Yagyuu wasn't here. Yukimura would talk about tennis, but Yanagi and Inui were from a rival school. Yanagi would talk about data, but nobody would be interested. Niou didn't feel very comfortable around all the distantly familiar faces and opted to stay silent. Once again it was Kirihara who started the conversation.

"How's Brazil, Jackal? Tell us about how you and Jackie met."

Jackal seemed willing enough to share his story, and after a brief exchange with Jackie, he began to tell the tale.

"We met at my old home town. Jackie is the daughter of my old tennis instructor, so when I came to visit him, I just met her. It's really just that simple."

Kirihara clapped. "You guys seem so perfect for each other!" he exclaimed. "You're just like twins!"

Marui felt slightly depressed.

"Thank you Akaya. I'm really glad that I found Jackie. Sometimes we can even read each other's thoughts! I'm just so happy that we're together." Jackal beamed at the compliment, he looked in to Jackie's eyes and shared a minute of elation.

Marui felt more than slightly depressed.

"How about you Yanagi-sempai? How is Seigaku?" Kirihara turned to face Yanagi and Inui.

"I'm afraid that our story is not as exciting as Jackal's, we were simply childhood friends. Now that we are at the same school again, we remain best friends." Inui calmly replied to Kirihara's question.

"As to your other question, Seigaku is fine. I don't particularly like the courts though. I find that the ones at Rikkaidai are much more refined. The teachers are not awfully smart, but I can take care of my own learning. At least I do not feel remorseful now that I have reunited with Sadaharu." After Yanagi finished talking, he and Inui conversed in a low tone, as if reminiscing some very happy memories. A peaceful smile appeared on their faces.

"I'm happy for you guys. You two deserve to be together, I mean who else would understand your obsessions with data? A match made in heaven." Kirihara commented with a laugh in his voice.

Marui was quite depressed.

"And you, Kirihara? How have you been?" Yanagi asked.

"Well…you see, after a bit of ups and downs, I ended up with Mura," Kirihara replied happily.

"It was troublesome, and it did take a long time, but we are happy now, and that's all that really matters," Yukimura added. He looked into Kirihara's eyes and they seemed to share a private joke as they quietly laughed.

Marui was really depressed now.

* * *

"It was nice meeting all of you, I am glad that Yanagi had such wonderful friends. Thank you for being there for him when I wasn't available." Inui thanked everybody as the reunion came to a close.

"I enjoyed seeing everyone again. We should meet up more often," Yanagi remarked. Kirihara agreed enthusiastically as Yukimura stood slightly behind him, adding a few details. Jackal and Jackie were slightly distant from everybody else, in their own little circle, conversing quietly. Yanagi listened to Kirihara's plans as Inui put his arm around his waist. Marui went from one group to another, acting the part of a host as Niou watched him fondly.

"Well I have to go now, hope to see you soon!" with a short goodbye, Kirihara disappeared in a flourish, taking Yukimura with him. Everybody else soon followed, saying their respective farewells, walking in to the night sky.

* * *

Niou stood in front of Marui's house. Marui placed himself beside Niou as they looked into the sky. It was a sort of peaceful silence, the kind that makes you have this warm fuzzy feeling inside, especially when you're with someone you love.

"Thank you," Niou whispered quietly, not looking at Marui.

"You're welcome. Sorry for being kinda mean today. I just assumed that we liked the same thing, sort of like Jackal and Jackie…" Marui's voice trailed off.

"It's alright. We're still on for tomorrow right? I'll pick you up at around 12:30. We can just hang out around town, just a bit of time together."

"Sort of like a date?" Marui seemed excited.

"If you choose put it that way," Niou concluded.

"Well, I have to go, my mom will be worried." Niou muttered an agreement. As Marui turned to the door, Niou grabbed his arm and pulled him in, planting a soft kiss on Marui.

"Good night."

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**A/N: I haven't updated for sort of a long time, I'm really sorry. Blame my English teacher, she gives too many writing assignment, so after I'm done those, I don't really feel like writing even more. How do you guys like this chapter? I would really like to know what you think.**

**By Chantal and Noel. All comments are welcome! Well basically we love reviews :)**


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